Three IOM prisoners serving sentences in UK returned to Island

Three prisoners convicted and sentenced on Island but were serving their sentences in the UK have been returned to prison on the Isle of Man.

Government says the move will ensure that any future parole arrangements for the prisoners will be conducted through the Isle of Man Parole Committee and allow 'a more informed evaluation and understanding of the impact parole may have on victims, families and the wider community'.

The Isle of Man’s custody legislation means that any offenders serving a life term are not subject to automatic release and must satisfy the Parole Committee that they are no longer a risk to the public.

The Parole Committee is independent from Government and considers a range of factors relating to the individual and the risks they pose.

Officials add bringing back the three prisoners, who're classified as as category B or below, removes the risk of them being released in the UK and then heading back to Manx shores without the Police, Probation Service, victims and their families being informed.

They also say repatriation of the individuals to the Isle of Man Prison will also ensure that the Island’s Prison and Probation Service can take a lead role in the rehabilitation programmes which work to minimise the risk of reoffending, should parole be granted in the future.

Minister for Home Affairs, Graham Cregeen MHK, says: "I appreciate that the return of these prisoners to the Island may be unsettling for the community.  Planning has been ongoing for this move for some time, but was paused during the Covid pandemic.

"We are ever conscious of the victims and their families and the impact that decisions of this nature may have.  We have worked to ensure, as best we can, that the victims or their loved ones affected by this decision have been informed."

Isle of Man prisoners held in UK prisons do return to the Island periodically as part of their visitation rights and are held at the Isle of Man Prison in Jurby when they do so

All new arrivals at the Isle of Man Prison self-isolate in a separate wing for 14 days.